Finally, Thomas Properties’
investment management group
advises institutional investors
on property portfolios and is
“very focused on earning fees,”
Thomas says.
Sustaining Green
One area in which Thomas has
made a significant effort is his
company’s sustainability initiatives.
In 2000, Thomas Properties produced the first high-rise
building to receive “platinum”
certification under the U.S. Green
Building Council’s Leadership
in Energy and Environmental
Design (LEED) program. This
award-winning, 1 million square
foot facility is the headquarters
of the California Environmental
Protection Agency, and thanks
to sustainability measures saves
more than $1.4 million annually in
operational costs compared with
comparable buildings in its market.
“We now are in the process
of completing the greening of
our entire portfolio, which we
expect to complete by the end of
2011,” Thomas says.
For its efforts, Thomas Properties earned the “Gold Award”
in NAREIT’s 2009 Leader in
the Light Awards, which acknowledge sustained and superior energy use practices.
Not Without Risks
Thomas Properties has chosen
not to become a REIT and
operate as a REOC to maintain
greater operational flexibility,
says Diana Lang, the company’s
CFO. For example, the company developed a high-rise condominium complex in Philadelphia, but the revenues generated
from individual unit sales are
prohibited income for a REIT.
In a recent report, JMP ex-
pressed concerns over the firm’s
lack of share liquidity. The top
10 stockholders own 63 percent
of outstanding stock, with aver-
age daily volume less than 1
percent of float, JMP reported.
Lang says this is in part due to it
not operating as a REIT.
West Coast Offense
Looking ahead, Thomas says he
foresees his company focusing on
the west coast, particularly California, where the best opportunities exist in terms of demographic
growth. He sees good potential
California EPA
Headquarters
and increasing activity in both
northern Virginia and Austin,
Texas, two areas where Thomas
Properties would like to expand.
Loeb notes that some of
Thomas Properties’ assets have
substantial embedded rent
growth on top of what the company now considers stabilized
cash flow. This could add value
in future years, as leases expire
and new leases are written at
higher market rents, he says.
If that happens, don’t be surprised if even more fans are following Thomas Properties a few
years from now. F
Lorna Pappas is a regular contributor to REIT magazine.
To view a video interview with Jim Thomas,
visit REIT.com.
Ad Index
AMB Property Corp . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
BankofAmerica ............................ 21
BDO . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
Cedar Shopping Centers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
Connexion Technologies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
Eastdil Secured . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
Frank Crystal & Co . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
Healthcare Trust of America . . . . Inside Back Cover
HoganLovellsUSLLP ....................... 35
M3 Capital Partners . . . . . . . . . . . Inside Front Cover
OneProperties,Inc. ......................... 36
ProLogis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
RBC Capital Markets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Real Foundations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Back Cover
Sorgente Group . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
YardiSystems ............................... 3
